Review: Catwoman Vol. 1- The Game

Quick Summary

Pros: The book is filled with action and drama. The artwork is detailed and matches the overall tone of the book.

Cons: Moments with clever maneuverings are typically cut short by generic action. The book leans on sex appeal a bit too often.

Overall: This is a book that is loud, boisterous, and full of action. For some, this means that it will lack the originality and subtlety that suits a book about a clever cat burglar. For others, the action movie style fight scenes and intense emotional appeal will be just what they are looking for. Overall though, this is a book with a few missteps that prevent it from being as good as it could be, but it might be entertaining enough for those looking for some cheap thrills.

Story

Catwoman Vol. 1: The Game, by Judd Winick, is a book that seems to have trouble defining itself. There are portions of the narrative that set Selina up as a sly cat burglar; multiple plotlines start with her pitting criminals against each other or using her cunning to trick the right people into doing what she wants. However, every time a storyline starts this way, it ultimately devolves into a loud display of fighting and acrobatics that destroys any nuance the story had. There is some generic emotional drama, which has potential to play out in the next volume, but the core appeal to the book is overwhelming action and obvious sex appeal. While this is not exactly my cup of tea, fans of this genre may find just what they are looking for here.

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The entirety of the book follows Selina Kyle, aka Catwoman, as she goes about a series of burglaries that get her in an ever increasing level of trouble. She steals from Gotham super-criminals, Russian mobsters, and even corrupt cops. This lifestyle keeps the book plunged in action and suspense, as Selina is constantly either beating up enemies or running away from more enemies.

All of this creates a book that is bold and unapologetically loud. Catwoman charges from one dangerous situation to the next and battles her way out every time. Fight scenes dominate the book, and Selina seems to constantly be on the verge of death. All of this makes the book feel like a summer action movie; it offers up plenty of violence and explosions but fails to really offer anything unique in terms of plot.

There are times though, when the narrative mixes up and the book seems to head in another direction. Catwoman preforms several stealthy jobs and even outmaneuvers a gang of criminals into attacking each other. These moments show Selina as a criminal mastermind rather than a marauding thug. However, these moments are also brief and are always cut short when the heist is inevitably interrupted, and Catwoman is forced to conclude matters with force rather than finesse. These narrative changes are upsetting because they build up a clearly false sense of drama and make the book appear to be something that it is not.

Finally, no review of this book could conclude without talking about its heavy reliance on sex and controversy. The first issue ends with Catwoman and Batman meeting up for a graphic tryst in a high-rise apartment while the rest of the book heavily plays on Catwoman’s looks. For this iteration of Catwoman, this broad sex appeal works. This is a character who is unabashedly sensual and who uses that to her advantage. However, there are definitely a few moments where this turns into base objectification. This volume runs close to the line on this issue, so hopefully the following volume will play things with a bit more tact.

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Art

Guillem March’s pencils are a great compliment to a book as bold and sensual as this one. March draws characters that look great in every circumstance and his depictions of Gotham City have just the right level of gritty detail. Colorist Tomeu Morey also does a great job in setting the tone of the scene, whether it be bright and colorful or gray and serious. Though there are a few wonky moments, specifically a few splash pages that lack a proper focus, the majority of this book is good quality and looks good because of it.

It is also worth noting that, like the story, the artwork in this volume is more risqué than a typical DC comic book. In some ways this is fitting, as it matches this particular version of Catwoman’s character. However, like the story, it teeters on the edge of this line and occasionally dips into the realm of sensationalism. The narrative is constantly finding reasons for Catwoman to appear in her underwear or without any clothing at all. As I said, it isn’t horribly out of character for this version of Catwoman but definitely pushes the limits in a few places.

Continuity

Catwoman Vol. 1: The Game starts the Catwoman New 52 series. This means that this is the first volume in a brand new continuity, so there are not many references to previous books or Catwoman’s history. Besides this, this volume does not make any references to other comics or series.

The story here continues in Catwoman Vol. 2: Dollhouse (Review).